Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant novel Chapter 196

“...Kuhh...!”

Director Baek Joon-seok collapsed.

He wasn’t dead.

He had only fainted from accumulated damage and the psychological shock.

And the cause?

Na Do-won’s relentless beating with his club.

When Baek Joon-seok saw the two men visiting him in the middle of the night, he was so startled he looked as if he had seen a ghost.

“T-Team Leader Na? And Investigator An? How...?”

“Why do you look so surprised? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“W-what are you saying...?”

“Come outside. Unless you want your family to see you in a miserable state.”

At the very least, they gave him some courtesy.

Since he was a married man with two children, they took him somewhere out of sight before beating him senseless.

Of course, in the end, no injuries remained.

Because Su-ho had taken care of it.

Looking at the unconscious Baek Joon-seok, Su-ho searched through his phone and spoke.

“No one else seems to be involved. Looks like it was just the two of them orchestrating the murder.”

“...”

Na Do-won remained silent at Su-ho’s words.

Even though he had vented his anger with the club, it didn’t really feel like he had.

After all, how many years had he spent with these people?

The betrayal ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) and loss he felt were beyond words.

Su-ho glanced at him before adding,

“What are you thinking?”

“My emotions are just all over the place.”

“I understand. But don’t waste too much emotion on them. Especially not guilt or pity. What’s done is done, and mistakes can’t be undone. Focus on the present and the future. If I hadn’t saved you, what do you think would have happened to your family?”

“...You’re right. Thank you for setting things straight.”

“No need to thank me. Let’s go ahead and process the arrests.”

“Understood.”

Su-ho gathered Kim Won-hu and Baek Joon-seok and headed to the association with Na Do-won.

When they arrived, Special Investigation Team 2 was already there, having arrived first with the captured members of the Seodaemun Three.

Lee Hyun-seok’s eyes widened in shock when he saw Kim Won-hu and Baek Joon-seok slung over their shoulders.

“Team Leader, what the hell happened? I get Team Leader Kim, but why the Director...?”

“I’ll explain later. Is everyone alright?”

“Yes, we’re fine.”

“Then lock up the Seodaemun members separately and start the interrogation. Hyun-seok, you follow me.”

“Yes, sir.”

Everything moved swiftly.

Even though it was already late at night, no one had any complaints.

If anything, their eyes were burning with anticipation at the thought of tearing into their captives.

After locking Baek Joon-seok and Kim Won-hu separately in the underground detention center, Na Do-won took Su-ho and Lee Hyun-seok to the break room on the same floor.

There, Na Do-won explained everything to Lee Hyun-seok.

When he finished, Lee Hyun-seok looked completely dumbfounded.

“What the hell...?”

“It’s all true. Their phones still have the call recordings and message logs. Use them to compile the reports.”

“...What do we tell the others?”

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“Hah...”

Yeah.

If they wanted to proceed properly, the team had to know the truth.

After thinking for a moment, Na Do-won made a decision.

“Gather everyone before they start writing reports and tell them everything. If they want to beat up the Seodaemun members midway, let them. Just don’t kill them.”

“Understood.”

Technically, beating up detainees was illegal...

But in the Special Division, it was an unspoken practice.

After all, Awakened criminals were far more resilient than regular people, and any injuries could be healed with potions or healing skills.

More importantly, villains often relied on their own durability to resist interrogations.

So, while the Special Division originally had no harsh interrogation practices, they had gradually adopted them out of necessity.

Lee Hyun-seok stood up after receiving the order, but before leaving the break room, he bowed deeply to Su-ho.

“Thank you. You saved us.”

“Haha, it’s nothing. Let’s talk again later.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Lee Hyun-seok left.

Now, only Na Do-won and Su-ho remained in the break room.

With only the two of them left, Su-ho smiled brightly and spoke again.

“Well then, should we talk about the real matter now?”

“Understood. But...”

Na Do-won glanced at Su-ho, still finding it hard to believe.

“The things you said earlier... Are they all true? You actually captured the Raid Guild leader and the Inagawa people?”

“Yes, it’s true. And right now, I have them detained separately.”

Su-ho took out several photos he had taken beforehand and showed them to Na Do-won.

The images depicted the Songgang brothers from the Raid Guild, Songgang-cheon’s elite unit, and the Inagawa faction, all unconscious.

“For a long time, the Raid Guild has been smuggling cultural artifacts, high-value items, and magical stones—practically treated like gold—to the Inagawa Syndicate. So, I caught them red-handed and arrested them on the spot. I also secured their transaction records and stolen goods.”

“Then why didn’t you bring them in immediately?”

“I was planning to. But I happened to get information about the Seodaemun Three, so I changed my plan. Look at Baek Joon-seok and Kim Won-hu. Even if I had handed over the Raid Guild right away, do you think it would have been processed properly? Sure, they might have rushed a few promotions to handle it. But in the end, I figured they’d regret it later.”

“Then... Do you trust me?”